Escape to Love Through Belladonna
by The JohhnyMcKilt Productions
Summary: Oneshot.After the tragedy, Macduff is not so happy with the way things had turned out.MacduffxMacbeth, MalcomxMacduff.character death


A/N: My first fic for Shakespeare! Macbeth is ultimate love! ...enjoy!xD

**Escape to Love through Belladonna**

_**Oneshot**_

Malcolm absently watched Macduff as the elder man contemplated the view outside the small castle window. He did not understand his moods recently. Macduff had been given the position of Royal Adviser to the king, and Fife has been given to Fleance. All was well again in Scotland, but it did not seem so for the former thane. King Malcolm sighed and rose from his throne to approach his morose friend. The other did not seem to notice the added presence until the young man moved his head to make him face him.

"Something is bothering you again," he said quietly.

Macduff replied by fixing him with a blank stare before returning to his pointless occupation.

"Would you want to talk about it?" Malcolm pressed. "You have been acting odd as of late. You do know I worry for the welfare of all my subjects, especially yours."

It took a while to get a word out of Macduff.

"I…I would not want to hinder the King from his royal obligations by bothering him with a trivial problem." he said.

"Trivial?" the young king answered with a small laugh. "My friend, your problem looks far worse than trivial to me. To hell with my obligations! I have none as of the moment." he took hold of the older man's calloused hand and tugged on it hopefully. "Come, let us to the Royal Gardens and talk as friends do."

Macduff would still not brighten as he let himself be led out of the stuffy castle and into fresh air.

The pair walked in silence among the vibrant flowers. Malcolm would occasionally steal a glance at his companion, who remained depressed and reserved.

"What ails you?" the king asked, deciding to make the first move. "I have noticed that you have not been yourself since the death of Macbeth. Does your problem concern something about it?"

For the first time that day, Malcolm saw Macduff smile. It was a small, sad smile, as one would have should one reminisce about events long passed.

"Aye," he said. "You know me too well. What has been bullying my conscience is something about Macbeth…and his death."

The king's expression somewhat hardened. "Which is?"

Macduff stopped his strolling momentarily to stroke the blood-red petals of a beautiful rose.

"I…sincerely regret that I have killed him."

Malcolm surely wasn't expecting that to come from his Adviser's lips. "Why?" He watched intently as the elder Scot drew in a shuddering breath before beginning.

"Macbeth and I…were very close friends when we were children…"

"I feel something slimy underneath my foot, Duff." A six-year old Macbeth whined as he and his best friend swam in a clear lake hidden within the forest by Dunsinane.

"Oh Beth…there you go again. Forget it and enjoy this afternoon. Besides, all the rocks 'neath fresh water feel slimy…" Nevertheless, young Macduff laughed at the grotesque expression on younger boy's face.

"_Duff?" asked Macbeth after a moment's silence. "When do you think shall we do this again? This may be our last. Father wants me to start schooling. I am to inherit the title as Thane of Glamis when he is gone he says."_

_Macduff took in the heart-melting sadness written all over his best friend's features. His lean frame broke the still waters as he wrapped an arm around the hunched figure and held him close for comfort. _

"_Beth…" the elder of the two boys began softly. "I cannot console you on that matter. It is inevitable that you shall be Thane of Glamis. You shall soon be very busy learning all the skills that would qualify you for that title. I cannot tell you when we can do this once more."_

_Macbeth shifted in his arms to face him. "You shall be busy too, shall you not?" he asked. "You are to be Thane of Fife. You shall start schooling too! We shall both have no time to play and enjoy each other's company…"_

"_I…" Macduff inwardly cringed as he heard his own voice break. "I cannot tell you otherwise." he affirmed._

_Macbeth leaned on his sturdy chest. "But it shall soon be over. After we are Thanes, we can visit each other once again and have a stroll, or even a swim." Summer blue eyes looked up to meet Macduff's storm gray ones._

_The other boy merely smiled at his naïve friend. "Promise me Beth that you shall wait for me…that we shall wait for each other…would you?"_

_Macbeth nodded and closed further space between them. "Of course."_

_The two royal children tightly closed the distance between them as their last goodbye._

Malcolm studied Macduff as he spoke. The Scot's eyes were shining from unshed tears, or was it just his imagination?

"Soon enough I was busy with my schooling and training," the king's Royal Adviser continued. "Before I knew it, Father had found me a wife. We were married when I turned sixteen. Two years later, Duncan was crowned King of Scotland, and the kingdom was invited to a masquerade ball."

Macduff chuckled at the memory. "At first I did not want to go, but Father told me that the ball would be the perfect opportunity to mingle with other thanes such as myself. I agreed by some vague notion…"

Eighteen-year old Macduff was excited. He did not know why but he was. He wandered about the Grand Hall, proudly showing off his wife, Rinae, to whoever would greet them. Brightly colored and elaborately decorated masks concealed the identity of each of the guests.

_Macduff bumped into a lad his age and both of them almost fell to the ground. In the rush to prevent this, the Scot dropped his mask and pulled the person upright. In an oddly prolonged moment, the mask of the lad also fell from his grip, perhaps in surprise, and revealed the face behind it. _

"_Macduff?" Macbeth asked in disbelief, fitting his palm to the curve of the elder teen's smooth cheek. _

"_Macbeth!" he replied, fondling the hand that held him. _

_They stayed that way for a split second of eternity, letting only their hands memorize the new additions to each others bodies, before they were brought back to reality._

"_Oh Macduff…" the Thane of Glamis said, stepping back and fetching a beautiful slender woman from the crowd. "My wife," he introduced. "Linne."_

_When his friend was late to react, Macbeth was seized by slight fear that Macduff would get angry, but instead, the Thane of Fife drew an equally pretty woman from the crowd and introduced it to him too. _

"_Beth," he said with that sad smile he was known for. "This is my wife, Rinae."_

_Macbeth looked down at the instant his resolve broke, and then recovered quickly. "So much has passed, Duff. Would you mind a stroll out in the gardens?" he suggested. _

"_I wouldn't mind." the elder thane replied and the party headed out the hall._

_It seemed that their husbands' introduction was enough for Linne and Rinae. The two wives started chatting away as if they had known each other before. Macbeth and Macduff, however, took longer in starting a conversation. The pair walked in silence, going ahead of the women by some ten feet. _

"_I'm sorry…" was all that Macbeth could say._

_Macduff closed his eyes to steady himself. "Don't apologize, Beth." he said, "…there is no need."_

"_Yes there is!" the younger teen insisted, his blue stare piercing his companion._

_The Thane of Fife could not hide his frustration. His hand ran through his chocolate-colored hair. _

"_I thought we were to wait for each other?" he said with lonely air. "Why could you not wait?"_

_Macbeth stared at the grass. "Answer that yourself, Duff. I am not the only one at fault."_

_The elder thane shook his head violently and hugged his childhood friend. "Sorry Beth. It's just that…I have missed you so much…I thought all would be the same after the passing of time…"_

_He pulled away to see the other boy smile. "I could have waited, Duff. I really could, if it were not on Father's orders."_

"_Hush…" Macduff put a finger to Macbeth's lips. "I am in the same situation. What is done is done. Besides, our wives and we are only bound by a marriage document. Nothing has altered my bond with you."_

_The younger thane laughed. "I have always loved how you show me the other side of things," he said, looking up at his friend with a seemingly innocent smile. _

Macduff could not help but return the contagious gesture as he interlaced his manicured phalanges in Macbeth's slender ones.

"I was unaware that twenty years would pass before I would behold Macbeth again." the adviser told the king. "It was when I accompanied your father, the late King Duncan to a feast in Macbeth's castle, celebrating his victory in the war between Scotland and Norway."

"That was the time when he inherited the title as Thane of Cawdor right?" Malcolm said. "Has the man changed since you last remembered him?"

Macduff nodded and swallowed before continuing. "The change in him was great and I was horrified. He did not recognize me when I first stepped foot in his castle. I immediately sensed that there was this dark force clouding his ability to see, think and hear as he used to."

"What…or rather…who was this dark force?" King Malcolm asked. The answer hung on Macduff's lips, for he looked like bad luck would befall him should he say such a dreaded name.

"Linne was a raven in dove's guise," the elder Scot said shakily. "I knew she had great and not very nice influence over Macbeth. I loathe her for that. She was the reason for the corruption of Macbeth's mind! She drove him mad!"

Malcolm held Macduff's shoulders firm to save him from lashing out. "Was it that bad? I never noticed…I had been too preoccupied by my father's death."

"And so rightly should you have been." replied the former thane. "I pretended not to be affected and spoke to Macbeth as if here were one of the mere lords. He did not seem to notice my apparent coldness. The murder that night was the start of all the confusion."

Malcolm cocked his head to the side, looking questioningly at Macduff. "Confusion? Where exactly?"

"In Macbeth and in our relationship…" Macduff said sadly. "It had been so obvious to me that he was the murderer. I did not know his motive back then and I was surprised that he would deny the deed. Then here comes Lady Macbeth backing him up, and I understood."

Malcolm was looking at him with his mouth slightly open. "I…I do not seem to see where you are leading me."

Storm gray eyes locked onto emerald ones. "I had talked with Banquo on the eve of Macbeth's coronation. He informed me of his and Macbeth's encounter with three weird women. They spoke of the future, telling them that Beth would be Thane of Cawdor and King of Scotland. Ban told me of his suspicion that there may be some foul play involved to make such words come alive. At first I did not want to believe, but then everything fitted!"

The King of Scotland panicked slightly as his most trusted Adviser looked like he was on the verge of tears. "How does Lady Linne play her part?"

Macduff shut his eyes and stayed rooted in his spot. His body stiffened as he steeled himself. "I suppose Macbeth had told Linne of his and Banquo's strange meeting. Her twisted head must have envisioned a dark plan to fulfill these prophecies more quickly. She took advantage of Macbeth's naïve nature. But why?!" Macduff expressed emphatically. "Why must she involve one as innocent as him in her ghastly feats?"

Malcolm could not contribute a word and placed an arm around his shoulder instead.

"For power?" the elder man continued, ignoring the display of consolation, yet emotionally benefiting from it. "Power never appealed to Beth. Never!" And then as if all strength abandoned him, he collapsed on the grass and wept as he would never do on normal days even if it could save his life.

Malcolm went with him as support, and Macduff resumed the letting out of his pent up frustration.

"After Banquo's murder my anger for Lady Macbeth grew. That decision had not been hers but Macbeth's, signifying that his mind was already tainted. I witnessed his madness with heavy heart at the feasting celebrating his Kingship. When I had strengthened my resolve I fled in order to seek you. I did not clear my intentions with Rinae…hence she and my boy, Nathan, paid for my carelessness."

"Aye," said Malcolm, speaking for the first time in minutes. "I heard the news of their murder at Fife. Was that Macbeth's doing too?"

"Most likely…" Macduff sniffed. "During my flight I found Fleance and together we sought the safety of King Edward with you. Do you remember? We could not settle our differences just yet…"

The young king smiled. "I do…" then he shook his head. "But behind all that, the war we planned to wage, your vivacity in vengeance…was all because of—?"

Tears once more rolled down Macduff's cheek, still smooth despite age. "…was all because of my dudgeon for Lady Macbeth…dudgeon for Macbeth's weak character…dudgeon for myself because I had not prevented it…because I had been too blind…because my wife and my son suffered for it!"

The former thane's frame violently shook involuntarily in Malcolm's arms. The king hated seeing Macduff so pitiful. His comforting arm turned into a fierce hug, hoping that through the bond, the older Scot would feel Malcolm's sympathy.

"And that is why now you regret killing Macbeth?" he asked, finally understanding.

Macduff nodded.

The younger Scot sighed, fearing the answer of the question he was about to ask. "What do you want to do?"

A long pause followed his words.

"Join him…" came the soft reply. "Join my Beth as I always wanted to in endless Paradise where we would no longer wait for each other…where I could sit with him without having any worry, just like we used to do when we were children."

Malcolm's heart weighed heavy in his chest. "Perhaps…" he hesitated a bit, but forced his will to be strong. "Perhaps I may help you with that."

The Royal Adviser looked up at the King. "I...I give my greatest thanks, Malcolm. I myself might have bitten the insane root Banquo and Macbeth have feasted upon. I doubt my strength to continue living."

--

Malcolm and Macduff sat in silence in the king's study. The curtains were drawn so that the last rays of sun Macduff would see would not deny him of their beauty. The two were simply waiting for the hour. Malcolm, you see, had let Macduff drink a lethal dose of belladonna, a poison which worked like arsenic, in fulfillment of the elder man's request.

"During that time…" Malcolm said uncertainly, breaking the silence. "Were you simply searching for the love you lost?"

Macduff looked at him. His face was quite dry now. "You can say that," he said.

The former thane did not understand the sadness in Malcolm's smile and the pain in his eyes…until he heard his next words.

"Now that Scotland is at peace I would have gladly compensated for your need had you simply expressed it."

Storm gray eyes widened as emerald eyes pierced his heart like how the poison did.

"Malcolm, you—"

But Macduff never had the chance to tell the young king whatever revelation he had. All that he saw as he fell to the hard floor was that smile…which was so much like Macbeth's…

King Malcolm turned away from the sight, fearing the weakness of his heart. But nevertheless he hung his head and succumbed to grief and all that went with it.

"Yes Macduff…I would have agreed to love you…" he whispered, answering the dead man's unfinished question. "I would have, but I did not know you had feelings for another. I would appear selfish and insensitive had I forced you into sharing something with me even if it was clear that you did not want it, won't I?" the young man chuckled. "So I am content to let you go…for the sake of seeing you happy."

He dared himself to cast one last glance on Macduff's face. It was still so young and vibrant, so full of life it had yet to live had the owner opted to. On it was a small, sad smile.

--

The sun cast an array of colors in the sky as it bade goodbye. Malcolm had not told a soul about what happened to Macduff. He had the man in his arms, carrying him bridal style, as he stood by the edge of a cliff overlooking a raging river by the vast green plains of Scotland's beautiful countryside.

The king felt wind wrap her tendrils around him and wipe away his tears like how he wished a certain someone would do. But never mind that now, he had missed his chance. Feigning indifference, he unceremoniously threw Macduff's body over the cliff...

...not bothering to witness it land.

**END**

A/N: I submitted this as an assignment for our Grammar class. I got a perfect score...x3 hope liked it! ...enjoy!xD and ciAo...wait...**2, 920 words?! hard core!**


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